Herein, a multifunctional
filler, a dye (organic)–clay (inorganic)
hybrid nanopigment (DCNP), was embedded into polylactic acid (PLA)
to fabricate a colored biodegradable/biocompatible film, which is
explored as a high thermomechanical resistant as well as a superior
light and mass transport barrier for food packaging applications.
In this respect, the DCNP was synthesized through a wet chemical process
with a reaction yield of 76% and incorporated into a PLA matrix at
various concentrations using a solution casting method. The morphological
characterizations revealed partially intercalated/exfoliated structure
for PLA–DCNP films. The samples filled with DCNP showed up
to 20% and 12 °C improvements in storage modulus (E′) and glass transition temperature (Tg), respectively, compared to those with neat PLA. Incorporation
of a small amount of DCNP into the PLA matrix significantly declined
the water vapor and gas permeability of PLA by 36 and 54%, respectively.
The optical property investigations indicated remarkable color characteristics
and light protection performance of the samples containing DCNP. The
results also showed better performance of the PLA–DCNP film
compared to that of the PLA–Cloisite 20A sample at an identical
filler loading. In conclusion, the desirable properties of the resulting
films highlighted the potential application of such nanocomposite
films as a promising option for food packaging materials.
For the efficient removal of some anionic dyes, a novel adsorbent was developed. The adsorbent was prepared by coating a synthetic polymer on magnetite nanosphere surface as a magnetic carrier. The synthesized nano-adsorbent was fully characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), vibrating sample magnetometer, X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope, and transmission electronic microscopy measurements. The synthesized nano-adsorbent showed high adsorption capacity towards removal of some anionic dyes (221.4, 201.6, and 135.3 mg g À1 for reactive red 195, reactive yellow 145, and reactive blue 19 dye, respectively) from aqueous samples. The dye adsorption was thoroughly studied from both kinetic and equilibrium points of view. It was found that the Langmuir isotherm showed a better correlation with the experimental data. The kinetic data showed that the process was very fast, and the adsorption process followed pseudo-second order kinetic models for the modified magnetic nano-adsorbent. Furthermore, the results showed that a stable and reusable (up to 20 cycles) nano-adsorbent for dye removal purposes was synthesized.
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